Friday, October 28, 2016

Here we are, finally at the brink of
November. I’m not sanguine, I’m still at
the edge of my seat, even though all polls say that Hillary Clinton will
win. I’m not objective enough to make
any kind of astrological prediction about that.

In a couple of days, it will be
Halloween, the quintessential woman’s holiday.
Like many other holidays, it began as an important pagan celebration,
but unlike the others, it’s never been entirely papered over with Christian imagery.
In astrological symbolism, this time of
year – the sun’s passage through Scorpio – is connected with what is
hidden. It’s the time when what lies
underneath comes most alive.

The pagan tradition is one that values
the natural world. This is an
interconnected world which keeps its balance through a constant cycle of giving
and receiving. This philosophy has been largely
replaced, in much of the globe, by one of hierarchy and exploitation, with
women disrespected, equated with the earth and nature. And now we are so out of balance that we are in
the process of destroying our own habitat and our species.

Looking under the surface, I see an ancient and holistic tradition buried
under centuries of patriarchal dogma. I
see oppression directed towards women’s bodies, softness and vulnerability met
with violence.

I am not so naïve as to think a woman
president will allow us to retrace our steps to that earlier time. There have been women in power before, and
Hillary Clinton is a woman of acute contradictions. She has worked hard on women’s and children’s
issues, but she’s been attacked relentlessly whenever she dropped the “traditional
feminine” pose and showed her strength.
And so she has lost much of her own spontaneity and trust along the
way. It’s not surprising.

This election has been a real test of
feminism, not just because Hillary Clinton is the first woman to approach the
US presidency, but because her opponent is such a misogynist. He pretty much covers all the classic
misogynist postures. He belittles women,
condescends to them, exploits them sexually, and is clearly grossed out by all
female bodily functions. His posture of
unrelenting dominance is an illustration of one of the most dangerous
tendencies of modern humankind.

He represents something that must be
peeled away, in order for us to regain our connection to the earth. We need to rediscover what is hidden beneath,
the underlying ground of human emotion. In this Scorpio season, we can turn to Hillary
Clinton, a woman with the sun, Mercury and Venus in this sign.

I also have a Scorpio sun, and I
completely understand Hillary’s desire to keep parts of herself secret, to
control what the world sees of her. This
is the sign of people who feel intensely but do not reveal easily. And Hillary Clinton has the moon in Pisces,
the most sensitive of water signs, so she is doubly vulnerable on the personal
level. No wonder she approaches
everything so carefully and strategically.

And this mistrust is met with a certain
amount of mistrust on the part of the people.
What’s underneath that reserve? For
many people, it feeds into their conspiracy theories. They say she’s murdered people, plotted against
anyone who challenges her, frozen people’s hearts with a glance. They say that she’s a witch, an excuse for
persecution that goes back centuries. They say she’s a practicing lesbian. (We’re
considered dangerous because we’re harder to bribe.)

To walk in the halls of power, you need
strong armor. Hillary has that. And still, through her life, she’s put much
of her energy into the bottom-line issues that have to do with easing suffering. So, as I prepare to go to the polls, I’m
thinking: More power to her.

This month, there’s a square between Jupiter
in Libra and Pluto in Capricorn. Pluto is
the ruler of Scorpio, and the planet of shadows, underground rivers, deep
transformations, secret powers, and unconscious desires. Jupiter, on the other hand, focuses on what
is overt, prominent, and socially acceptable.

Jupiter also represents the people’s
picture of themselves, the philosophy of a community. With Jupiter squaring Pluto,
there will be growing tension between the outer image that the country is
presenting, and what’s going on underneath.
After the election, I can see the Republicans starting right away to
conspire to retake power, to try to reestablish their past empires. But there could also be healthier and more
holistic movements tunneling underneath, like earthworms aerating a
garden.

And I’m sure there will be some overt
grabs for power, as well. At the point
where I’m standing, this crossroads between a woman and a woman-hater, I’m
still not sure what will happen. I’m as
nervous as a temple healer, watching soldiers from the North destroy statues of
the Goddess, knowing they will destroy women next. This old fear and anger is buried too, and I
hope it has been composted into wisdom by the ages. I don’t want revenge, only a world where both
young and old women are free, freer than even men are now.

And in this coming month, I’m ready for
whatever my deep self has to teach me.